Tsumiki's worries
by masonxy
Summary: Io is rarely late, and Tsumiki waits for him so they can walk to school together. When he doesn't show up all together, she worries what has happened to her friend and crush. What happened to Io? (I would really love some feed back on this :))
1. Chapter 1: Where is Io?

**Hello! This is my background involving this anime, but it's probably not important so feel free to skip this. I've only recently watched all thirteen episodes and have been dying to write a fan fic for this anime. I'm trying to write this like an episode you would watch. I hope that I can bring out the comedy and the bit of romance that makes Acchi Kocchi so great. Please comment, I would love to get better at writing fiction! Thank you!**

Io was rarely late.

Tsumiki stood up against the wall outside the train station,waiting. They had arranged to meet up there before school everyday. She had her hands in her coat pocket, watching her breath steam up in the winter cold. It was snowing, light flakes floating gently to the ground around her. The cat statue across from her would be completely covered in a matter of hours if the snow kept falling.

_Where is Io?_

She checked the time on her cell phone and saw that school would be starting soon. Still, she waited patiently for his arrival, imagining something warm to keep her mind off the cold. She thought of nuzzling up to Io when he finally arrived, his warm body up against her, maybe he would even let her borrow his scarf again. She felt blood rushing to her face and she quickly shook the fantasy our of her head. The last thing she needed was to have her nose bleed out precious warm blood in the cold. Perhaps later, she thought. Instead, she started picturing her nice, warm homeroom class, standing by the heater with both hands so close they would almost burn. But she would purr at warmth like that. That was of course if her teacher hadn't broken the heater...again. She regretted having that thought as a cold breeze suddenly blew towards her and she shivered, a quiet whimper slipping from her lips.

_It's so cold..._

She whipped out her phone again, wondering if she should call him. Maybe something had come up. But she considered he might be on his bike. He usually rode his bike if he was running late, and she didn't want to stop him with a phone call. When he did arrive with his bike, she mused, she wouldn't hesitate to take a ride in his little basket, despite how embarrassing that would be. She just wanted to get someplace warm, and in a hurry. If he offered, she would accept. Not after biting his head for being late of course.

_I'll bite him good..._

Time passed by, and still no sign of Io. Maybe he was on his way.

Tsumiki decided to walk ahead to school without him. Perhaps later on he would meet up with her along the way, with Mayoi and Hime with her. She lifted her foot to walk and realized that she was ankle deep in snow. She didn't recall that being the case when she first arrived at the station. Had she really waited so long that she was slowly being buried in snow? She hadn't felt it before, but now that her attention was drawn to her feet, she suddenly had feeling in them again. She shivered, walking her frozen feet slowly towards school.

It wasn't too long of a walk before Tsumiki heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Good morning Tsumiki!" Hime called out as she walked towards her. She had the brightest of smiles on, along with a nice green coat to ward off the winter weather.

"Good morning," Tsumiki said quietly.

Hime was looking around diligently.

"Hey, where is Io? Isn't he usually with you?" she asked.

"He didn't show up..." Tsumiki had her head down, trying not to look too disappointed.

"Oh, I see." Hime said. "But, I'm sure he will show up soon." She smiled at Tsumiki, who could only reply with a nod.

"Hey, Mayoi isn't with you either," Tsumiki pointed out.

"Ah yes! She said she would be running a little late today."

Sure enough a few minutes later:

"Hime! Tsumiki! Good morning!" Mayoi's voice sounded loudly as she waved at the two of them. Her white lab coat whipped up in the wind.

"Wow! Mayoi, you look really cool with your coat flowing in the wind," Hime said excited.

"I know! It makes me feel like a super hero." She did a few quick turns and then took a pose. "Super Mayoi to the rescue!" she announced, sound effects included.

Though Hime laughed, mesmerized by their friends silly fantasy, Tsumiki still had her head in the clouds. She was off to one side, looking off into space, still wondering what was taking Io so long.

"Hey wait, where's Io? Isn't he usually with you Tsumiki?" Mayoi asked.

"He didn't show up..." she replied, but a little more annoyed than before. She didn't want to keep answering that question.

"Oh. Did he call you at all to say where he was?"

Tsumiki shook her head. She had her hands on her phone in her pocket, so she would have felt it go off if she couldn't hear it in the increasingly loud wind.

The girls shivered, huddled closely together as they walked the rest of the way to school.

"Maybe he's already at school?" Hime suggested.

"No. We both said we would meet each other by the train station before school." Tsumiki said.

"Aha!" Mayoi piped in. "So you two did finally agree to meet up? Now you won't have to keep stopping in random places along the way, hoping to find him."

"I wasn't doing that before..." Tsumiki protested quietly.

Already, Mayoi was fantasizing about the two of them. Even if she didn't say anything, the cunning smile and evil laugh told Tsumiki everything. She didn't feel like doing anything to Mayoi, but if she felt the reason to, she would have no problem with leaving another hole the size of Mayoi's head into the wall. As they passed by said wall, she noticed the two holes from incidents before were still there, and she wondered why, after a year, no one had bothered to fix the wall.

They finally made it to the school, and the yard was covered with thick layers of snow.

"Finally! Warm Homeroom here I come!" Mayoi shouted.

The tall box heater inside was thankfully not broken this time and the three of them huddled around it like a fire pit. The warm coils brought feeling back into Tsumiki's limbs and she purred loudly for the comforting heat.

The door of the room came open and Sakaki walked into the room.

"Good morning friends! I heard that purr from all the way down the hall, and I knew you guys were in here!" he said, laughing. Tsumiki's cheeks turned red, but she ignored the embarrassing remark.

"Tsumiki's cat like reactions can't be helped Sakaki! It's only in her nature." Mayoi teased.

"Cats can't stand the cold, even with all that fur," Sakaki remarked, contemplating in his head. "It's the cat's one weakness and they always must find a place to be warm. If only they could find a way to adapt to the freezing temperature."

"How would the cat find food in such harsh conditions?" Hime chimed in.

"Ahh, for that the cat would have to be a vicious predator. With such little food, it would have to hunt down its food." in his mind, he pictured a giant, furry, black cat with razor sharp fangs and its body was twice the size of a human. It was holding a giant fork and knife in both hands. "I see you little rabbit!" he said making a deep, monster like voice pretending to be the cat. "And soon I will have you bloody neck in my mighty jaws! You shall be my dinner!" There was a hint of jolly madness in his eyes.

"Ahh! That sounds scary!" Hime whimpered.

"It's okay Hime," Mayoi comforted her. "Those kinds of cats don't exist"

"What about snow leopards?" Tsumiki said.

"Eh?" Sakaki said confused. "Are those things cats?"

"Yes."

"Oh...Then you better watch out Hime! Or the snow leopards will come for you when you least expect!" he said with an evil laugh.

"Waaaaah!" Hime was crying, frightened.

"Hiime! There's no leopards around here," Mayoi said, patting her and turning to Sakaki. "Io would hit you for saying something like that."

Something sparked in Sakaki's head. "Hey. Where is Io? Tsumiki, isn't he usually with..."

Tsumiki's cold, cat eyed glare dared Sakaki to finish the question, but he couldn't find the courage to speak the final word. He felt cold, as if she was staring through his eyes and into his soul, and he shuddered a bit.

"He didn't show up!" Mayoi answered for her, laughing awkwardly to try and ease the tension. But Sakaki didn't hear what she said, still eye locked with Tsumiki's creeping gaze.

"Scary..." he managed to finally say. "Like a snow leopard."

Hime gasped. "Does that mean Tsumiki is going to hunt and kill Sakaki for dinner?!"

Class began, and Io still hadn't shown up. Tsumiki stared absent minded at the empty desk beside her, and she had trouble paying attention to the lecture. Her eyes darted from Io's desk, to the clock on the wall, to the class room door, and then back to Io's desk. She kept her attention on those things, as if looking constantly would magically bring him here.

_Io..._

She slumped onto her desk, her head face down in her open notebook, mewing quietly, sadly to herself.


	2. Chapter 2: The Worry Storm

Sakaki met with the girls in their home room for lunch. Mayoi and Hime were sitting together with their lunches out, slowly nibbling away. Sakaki took a huge bite out of his sandwich, noticing a lack of Tsumiki in their group.

"So, no Io yet huh?" he asked.

Hime shook her head. "No, he hasn't shown up at all."

Sakaki stroked his chin. "Hmm..I see. It's strange that he hasn't tried to contact us. Have any of you called his phone?" He was starting to worry as well.

Mayoi replied. "No need, no need. We already have someone working on that!" She pointed to the dark corner of the room where Tsumiki was on her phone. Her foot tapped impatiently as she listened to the dial tone again. Her cat ears twitched nervously on her head, hoping he would pickup.

"She's been on her phone trying to reach him during all of our breaks."

The three of them stared at the determined look on her face. Io's voice mail started again.

"Nya!" Tsumiki growled as she redialed his number again.

The other three were watching her curiously as she repeated the same process over and over.

"She started calling as soon as class was over. With little diligent Tsumiki manning the phone, Io is sure to pick up. Eventually." Mayoi said, confidently.

"I hope Io is okay." Hime said.

"Nya!" Tsumiki growled again.

The snow out side was falling thicker, and the wind rapped against the windows.

"It looks like a storm is going to come in," Hime pointed out

"Man, if Io even is on his way this late he's going to be covered in snow." Sakaki said.

"Ah! And when he comes in he's going to say," Mayoi did the best impression of Io she could. "Sorry I was late. I'm so cold. Can this heater get any warmer?"Quickly she switched to an impression of Tsumiki. "Io, let me wrap around you like a blanket and warm you with my love."

Hime was on the ground in an instant, a tiny river of red running out from her nose.

"Ka..Kawaii!" she stuttered, still in a daze imagining little Tsumiki saying those lines.

"Tee-hee. What do you think about that, Tsumiki?" Mayoi asked when she didn't respond. Maybe she hadn't heard.

Tsumiki had her head back down on her desk, mewing sadly again, her phone clutched loosely in her hand that dangled of freely off the desk. She felt like crying, but forced herself to stay calm.

"Tsumiki?" Hime said, wiping the blood from her nose. "Are you alright?"

"Mm-mm..." Tsumiki shook her head with her face still flat on the desk.

"Eh, whats wrong? Why did you stop calling?" Mayoi asked.

Tsumiki held up her phone for the other three to see. The light was out and the screen was completely dark.

"It died," she whimpered quietly. She dropped her arm back down and her phone hung down to the ground in her hand again.

"Eh? Already?" Sakaki said. "How many times did you call him?"

"One hundred."

"One hundred?!" the other three shouted in unison.

"And thirty eight," she finished

"Wait. You were keeping track?" Sakaki said, actually impressed of her diligence. Maybe even a bit frightened.

_Where are you Io? _Tsumiki thought.

Her heart pounded loudly in her chest as anxiety and worry got the best of her. Not once had Io answered any of her calls or messages, and it had been hours already. She hadn't even touched her lunch yet, but her stomach was twisting inside her and she didn't feel like eating at all. She wanted to know Io was alright, a pat on the head from him would set her right.

She heard the sound of the door opening.

_Io!_

She bolted up right in her seat, scaring Sakaki who had been leaning a little to close to her. Her cat ears perked up, anticipating Io's arrival.

But it was only her teacher. Her ears flopped back down again. The excitement had gotten her riled up, and the disappointment made her feel twice as bad than before.

"Good afternoon, students!" she said with the same cheery smile she had year round.

"Good afternoon, Sensei!" they all said together.

Tsumiki's teacher approached the group. At first it looked like she was going to address Sakaki, but then her attention fell on Tsumiki.

"Tsumiki..are you feeling alright?" she asked, motioning towards her nose.

Mayoi looked to see that there was a trail of crimson under Tsumiki's nose, and relished in triumph that she had heard what she said about her and Io. Though she kept it to her self, she couldn't help but let a sly smile run across her face, with a glint of sparkle in her eye.

Tsumiki noticed.

"Why are you so happy?" she asked staring at Mayoi, wiping off the blood like nothing had happened. Though, her cheeks were still rather red.

Their teacher laughed awkwardly, not sure exactly what happened. It was probably for the best.

"Sensei..." Tsumiki started. "Have you heard from Io?"

"Eh? I was going to ask Sakaki the same thing," she replied.

Sakaki shook his head. "We haven't heard anything yet." He sounded disappointed. Like Tsumiki, he hoped Io's teacher would have the answer.

"Well," their teacher smiled. "Please let me know if you hear from him." With that she left the room, which became really quiet. Too quiet. Tsumiki could hear her heart beat echoing and bouncing off the walls. It was the sound of total despair.

"I guess nobody knows where he is..."Sakaki acknowledged.

"I wonder what happened to him," Hime said.

Mayoi slammed her hand on the desk, startling Sakaki who had been using it as a seat. He was apparently very jumpy today.

"There's only one explanation for this!" she said. "Io has...!" she left a pause, waiting for the others to gather around her words. "Been abducted!"

Hime gasped. "You mean like being kidnapped?"

"Ah ah ah," Mayoi said wagging her finger at them as she unraveled her theory. "This was no ordinary abduction! The kidnappers had a solid plan! They must have known that Io would meet up with our Tsumiki and didn't want to risk taking him under her protection."

Tsumiki nodded. Not in agreement with Mayoi's ludicrous fantasy of course, but with the idea that she would probably beat anyone who even attempted to do something like that to Io.

Mayoi continued. "So! They decided to take him before the two met up. They drove up close to him and then...!" Another pause for dramatic effect

"They hit the button on the control panel and activate a tractor beam up into their mother ship!" In her head she was imagining a giant flying saucer piloted by a tiny, blue haired girl with cat ears and antennae. When Io was brought on to her ship, she pounced on top of him and mewed happily.

"Io abducted by cat aliens?" Hime said, not knowing whether the image was cute or scary.

Sakaki fell over. "You can't be serious..."

"Why does the alien look like me, Mayoi..." Tsumiki sighed.

Sakaki got back on his feet. "There's no such things as aliens!" he yelled.

"Oh yeah? Do you have any better ideas?" Mayoi challenged.

"Hmm. Maybe he's frozen somewhere outside."

Tsumiki's heart stopped and she couldn't breathe. An image of Io crawling on the ground during the unexpected storm blew up in her mind, his warmth and life slowly leeching from him. Steadily he was being buried in snow, and only his hand remained above the surface. When she got her bearings back she rushed to the window to look outside.

_Maybe he's out there. Maybe he's hurt. _

She scanned the schoolyard but saw only layers of snow, unable to really make anything out.

Sakaki realized what he said had affected her.

"Hey! Tsumiki! That's only one possibility!," he said, trying to calm her, though she wouldn't stop staring out the window.

Mayoi piped in. "Yeah!"I'm sure there's tons of reasons why Io didn't show up. Like...like..." She tried to come up with something, but tiny cat girl alien abductions was still on her mind. "Hime, help me out here," she whispered.

"M-Me?" Hime stuttered. She didn't enjoy being put on a spotlight randomly like that. She struggled to find something to say, but she was worried about the outcome. She wanted to comfort Tsumiki but she was afraid that she would make things worse. Then again, how could it be any worse than what Sakaki had said. She thought hard about an answer that would explain everything.

"Maybe..." she started, stumbling on the words she wanted to say. She decided to try and summarize. "Maybe he moved?"

The words struck Tsumiki like an anvil. She fell to all fours and trembled, no longer able to hold back the tears that she had been repressing.

"Hime! What did you say that for?" Sakaki said.

Hime was flustered. "No wait! I didn't finish! I was going to say that maybe he and his family moved to a different place, but not too far. I didn't mean that he wasn't going to be at this school anymore! I just thought that maybe they were moving things now and they've been so busy that Io can't answer his phone. And I thought that was a reasonable explanation, but I didn't know how to say it and I didn't have time to..." Hime was talking much too fast trying to explain herself. But the damage was already done.

"I..." Tsumiki spoke, everyone quieting down.

"I..." she said again.

"Tsumiki?" Hime asked worried.

"I...I..Io!" she cried. She bolted past them and out the door, holding her arm up to her face poorly covering the stream of tears running down her cheeks.

The other three were speechless, and it became eerily quiet again.

"I blew it, didn't I?" Hime said depressed.

"I think we all blew it," Mayoi replied, sharing her emotion.

"Yeah, we kind of went to far. I don't think I've ever seen Tsumiki cry before," Sakaki said.

The girls nodded in agreement. It was already hard to be worried about Io, but now they were also worried about Tsumiki. She wasn't her calm, collective self anymore. Io had only missed the first half of classes, and it was already driving her crazy. The oncoming storm of cold despair didn't lighten the mood.

"We should apologize to Tsumiki when she gets back," Hime said.

"Yeah, we should try and support her in her time of need!" Mayoi said, her enthusiasm returning. "Sakaki! You're the closest thing to Io we got. Give her a pat on the head for him."

"Whaa...sure I guess," Sakaki said, not sure if he felt comfortable taking over Io's responsibilities, even if it was just for the day. But still, if it would comfort her in the smallest, he'd do it for his friend.

But Tsumiki didn't come back. They waited patiently between small conversation until the bell rang for everyone to return to class. Hime and Mayoi watched the students piling into the class room, trying to spot Tsumiki in the crowd. When everyone settled down and was in their seats, she was nowhere in sight.

"First Io. Now Tsumiki?" Mayoi said to Hime.

"What happened to her?" Hime replied, staring at Tsumiki's empty desk.

Their teacher hadn't arrived yet so they got up and headed for the door. They looked down both ends of the hall, hoping to see Tsumiki running late to class. But she wasn't. Only their teacher was walking down the halls.

"Sensei!" Mayoi called out to her. "Tsumiki is missing from class!"

Their teacher paused in front of them.

"Oh that's right," she said with a calm mile. "Tsumiki asked for permission to leave early to go check up on Io. But if anyone were to ask, I'm supposed to tell them that she was ill"

Her smile faded, replaced by panic.

"Wait! I wasn't supposed to tell you that! Just forget what I said!" she yelled, flustered.

"She left for Io's apartment then?" Hime asked.

"Sensei! Tsumiki left her coat on her desk. She's going to be so cold without it! But we can bring it to her!"

Their teacher had calmed down before replying. "Oh? I don't mind you returning her coat, but do both of you need to go?"

"Yes of course! A storm is going to start soon and we don't want to be alone when that happens," Mayoi insisted.

Their teacher gave it a brief thought. "Very well. Make sure you stick together when you find her okay?" she said.

"Of course!" Mayoi said again, dragging Hime along. "We will tell Io you said hello!"

"Mayoi! Don't run so fast, I'm going to trip!"

The girls got out of the warm building and into the unforgiving cold. The snow was falling thicker than ever, and they didn't have much time to catch up with Tsumiki.

Hime sneezed, the cold chilling her to the bone. "Poor Tsumiki, I hope she's okay," she said.

"We'll have to run to find her. Next stop! Io's house! Nyahooi!" Mayoi said, trying to keep her spirits up.

"Right!" Hime said. "Did you want me to hold Tsumiki's coat?"

"What coat?"

()

The thick snow made it difficult for Tsumiki to run. Her coat was holding off the harsh winds as best it could. She hadn't considered the weather when she decided to leave school. She had her arms wrapped tightly to her chest, keeping her pounding heart warm. There was only one thing on her mind, and it kept her going through the winter's freezing wrath.

_Io.._

She kept his name in her mind and it moved her forward.

_Please be okay, _she prayed.

_Please don't be moving away.  
_

_Please don't be hurt or frozen._

_Also..._

_..._

Her face grew red, embarrassed that she would even take this idea into consideration.

_Also, please don't have been abducted by cat aliens..._


	3. Chapter 3: Caretaker

"You lied to Sensei?!" Hime yelled over the howling wind, holding tightly onto Mayoi's arm to keep warm, her eyes shut to protect them from the blinding snow.

"Sensei was naive to let Tsumiki go on her own in this weather! She should have asked us to go with her!" Mayoi said through chattering teeth. Her long bangs made for a great shield against the snow, despite them blowing around like crazy, so she led Hime along.

The sky was becoming darker as clouds clustered closer together, so dark that street lights started turning on.

"I hope we find Tsumiki before it gets really bad out here," Hime said

"We will journey to Io's until we do!" Mayoi announced like an epic quest. "Or die trying!"

"Wh..what?" Hime stuttered, suddenly more fearful of the journey ahead of them.

There were no cars on the road anymore, the snow too thick to safely drive through. At any moment, the snow plows would roll in, removing the snow, mountains at a time. Until then, the roads were eerily empty, and the girls felt like they were the only two out in the terrible weather.

"Hime, be on the look out for someone buried in snow." Mayoi said.

"You mean like Tsumiki?"

"Maybe? Just look for a Tsumiki sized mound of snow and start digging if it moves."

"You mean like that one?" Hime asked, running quickly towards the snow pile. It may have just been the snow playing tricks on her, but she swore she saw it moving, crawling even.

"Tsumiki! Were coming to save you!" Hime cried as she started digging through the snow.

"Are you sure that's her?" Mayoi said, digging with Hime.

The two pushed away snow until Hime found something soft underneath.

"I found her!" She pulled what she had grabbed out gently.

"Nyow!" cried the bright orange cat that Hime had rescued from the snow.

Hime stood stunned by the cuteness of the grateful cat that was licking her face with its rough tongue.

Mayoi stood stunned in disappointment that they had rescued the wrong cat.

"Enough of this side quest! Onward to finding Tsumiki!" Mayoi announced moving once again.

"Wait Mayoi! What do I do with this cat?!" Hime yelled.

"Mrow," said the happy cat.

()

Tsumiki's ears were frozen. Her pants were soaked with melting snow as she reached Io's apartment complex.

_I made it._

She breathed heavily, clouds of steam forming from her lips. Her legs were tired and sore from running through deep snow. Her heart throbbed in her chest as she approached Io's door.

For the longest time she stood facing his front door, not able to move. It should have been a simple task to ring his bell and see if he was home. But a part of her was keeping her motionless. It wasn't the nervousness of seeing him by herself again, but rather the fear that she wouldn't see him.

She took a deep breath and extended a frozen finger.

_Io, please be home...please be okay._

"Ding-dong." the bell rang. Then she waited. Every passing second brought more worry in her. If he was home, how long would it take him to answer his door?

"Ding-dong." she rang it again.

Could Sakaki be right? She knew he was only speculating, or maybe even making a cruel joke, but could she have passed him on her way to his house? She hadn't even thought to observe her surroundings, focused only at getting to Io's apartment as quickly as she could. As she ran ideas through her head, she felt cold; colder than she had been out in the snow. She felt like she would collapse again.

Suddenly, her cat ears perked up at the sound of a lock being undone. The door slowly opened, like the solution to a great mystery. It only opened a crack, and she couldn't see who was on the other side.

"Who is it?" a voice half whispered. Tsumiki's heart raced as warmth began returning to her body. It was Io's voice, but he sounded much weaker. The sudden wave of relief had left her a bit dizzy, and she couldn't form sentences properly to reply.

"I..Io," she managed to say.

Upon hearing her voice, Io opened the door all the way. Tsumiki saw that he was still in his pajamas.

"Tsumiki..." he said. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you still be in school?"

His glasses hung loosely off his face, like he hadn't made an effort to make sure they were on properly. His cheeks were rosy, but the rest of him looked pale. He was hunched over a bit, like his body was too weak to support him.

"Io..." she said, trying to keep her voice calm. "You're sick?"

Io sneezed, as if to answer her question. "Yeah, I'm not feeling too well. I meant to call and tell you, but I've been asleep all day. I only just woke up." he said, sniffing.

_That was it? _She thought.

How could she not have figured that out sooner? It was the simplest explanation for his absence. And here she had been thinking too much, her worry creating elaborate stories in her head. Buried in snow, moving away...aliens. The stories had riled up her emotions, and made her assume the worse had happened to Io. She embarrassed, upset with herself. She couldn't keep her calm as an overwhelming wave of relief washed over her, and she felt tears welling in her eyes again.

"Tsumiki?" Io said. "Are you okay?"

Before he knew it, Tsumiki charged at him, wrapping her arms around him tightly around him.

"Tsumiki wait! I'm sick..."

But she didn't care, tightening her grip around his waist, crying softly into his warm chest.

"I'm sorry..." she said, struggling her words through tears.

Io was stunned for a moment. Her hug was cold and it sent shivers through his body. But he didn't push her off, because it was also warm filled with love and concern.

"Were you worried about me?" he asked.

"N..nyu." Words were still lost for Tsumiki, her head still filled with conflicted feelings of sadness and relief.

But Io knew. He wrapped one around her, holding her even closer too him, and he felt her warm cheeks as they pressed up against him.

"I'm sorry," he said, his other hand placed on her head. "I'm sorry I made you worry."

The touch of his hand made Tsumiki's worries and sadness melt away as he pet her softly. Her tears stopped falling as she felt a sense of warmth radiating from his kindness and understanding. She purred quietly, hoping he wouldn't hear her. She didn't care if he was ill, she wanted this moment to last forever.

"I hope I didn't wake you," she said.

"Actually, something woke up a little before you rang my doorbell."

"What did?"

A loud rumbling sound startled her and she jumped back a bit.

"My stomach," he answered, turning redder. "I haven't eaten since yesterday, so I got up to get some food."

He was swaying a bit, and he leaned on a wall for support.

"Are your parents still not home yet?" Tsumiki asked.

Io shook his head. "I'll be fine though," he said, pushing off the wall. "I just need to get to the kitchen..." He had pushed off the wall to hard and was now falling the other way, his weak legs unable to support him.

Quickly, Tsumiki was able to catch him, before he hit the ground.

"Io, go back to bed," she said. "You need to rest more."

"But..." he argued. His roaring stomach finished his sentence.

"Bed. Now," Tsumiki commanded. "I'm..I'm going to take care of you Io." She blushed at her own words as she led Io back to his room.

()

Hime had the orange cat stuffed into her jacket. It had it's head poking out from her collar, mewing in approval.

"You should find yourself a cat Mayoi! Their so warm and fluffy!" she said, hugging the cat closely to her.

Their journey was nearly over, the two of them, three if counting the cat, were mere blocks away from Io' apartment. Yet, the wind didn't let up. It flew even more furiously at them, making it hard to see through flurries of thick, white powder. The storm was becoming an all out blizzard and they needed to get to safety soon. Despite her new found warmth, snow clung to Hime's soaked clothes, caking thicker and thicker on her making it difficult to move.

"Look! Were almost there Mayoi!" Hime shouted pointing towards Io's apartment complex. "Mayoi?"

She turned to see her friend face down in the snow, being quickly burried.

"Mayoi! Are you alright?!" Hime quickly knelt next to her, brushing away the snow.

"I can't go on...too tired...and cold...can't move..." Mayoi moaned, her voice very monotone.

"Come on, we're almost there!" Hime tried to coax her up.

"Hime..? Drag me to safety please?"

Hime tugged with both arms, but barely moved the limp Mayoi a centimeter.

"I can't do it!" she cried.

"Are you calling me fat...?" It was just like her to be making jokes at a time like this.

"Just leave me here. Tell everyone how I sacrificed my life so you could live Hime." Mayoi was being over dramatic as usual, but it was scaring Hime.

"I'm not leaving you here, I'm going to get you out of here!" Hime pulled her helpless friend, her face dragging in the snow. But soon she was buried again and Hime had to brush the snow off again.

"What do I do, what do i do?!" she said out loud.

The cat suddenly hopped out of Hime's coat, walking to Mayoi's freezing head.

"Mrow!" It let out a friendly greeting.

Mayoi lifted her head out of the snow and locked eyes with the cat.

"Are you going to warm me too, cat?" she asked, hopeful.

But instead, the cat punched her with a powerful Meow-ppercut straight up, out of the snow and onto her back.

"Gah! I don't think that's helping!" Hime cried.

Mayoi lay motionles again, but was twitching ever so slightly.

"Why... you..." Mayoi's voice returned to her. She bolted upright, angrily chasing after the cat.

"Come back here! I'm going to get you good!" She ran fast, despite being caked in snow like Hime.

The cat ran towards Io's, mewing playfully.

"W..Wait up you two!" Hime said running as quick as she could after them.

()

The tea was ready. Tsumiki poured it gently into a large mug, throwing in an ice cube so that it would be warm enough to drink right away, but not hot enough to burn Io's tongue. She had a pot of water on the stove, waiting for it to boil. She would have to familiarize herself with Io's kitchen to make him something to eat.

In the mean time, she brought the tea to Io who was wrapped in half a dozen blankets on his bed.

"Here, drink this Io," she said, handing him the cup of tea and some medicine. "I'm making soup that will help you feel well again."

"Oh, thank you," he said, washing the medicine down with a quick sip of tea. He coughed violently, making sure it was away from Tsumiki. She handed him a box of tissues when his throat was cleared.

"You don't have to do this for me," he said. "It's not that I don't appreciate it, but I don't want to make you ill too."

"I know," she said. Io was always thinking of others before himself. "But I want to help you get better a soon a possible so that I..." she quickly changed her wording, "so that we can see you again at school tomorrow."

The door bell suddenly rang. Who would be visiting at this time? Io suddenly moved to get up.

"No, stay," she said, placing her hands on his shoulders to keep him down. "Remember, I'm..I'm taking care of you now. Let me worry about these things. Okay?"

At first, Io stared at her processing what was going on, his sickness making him a bit denser than he usually was. But then he smiled. "Thank you, Tsumiki. I know I will feel much better with you around"

Tsumiki felt her face burning as she stared absent minded at his handsome smile, and his kind word echoing through her head. She nodded in response, with a smile of her own, and quickly left to check on the door. Her nose bled a soon as she turned around. She didn't want to accidentally spray him when he was sick.

She went to the door, her heart still pounding heavily in her chest. She grabbed a stool to stand on to check the peep hole on the front door and was incredibly confused by what she saw. She got down and opened the door, the freezing cold air reminding her how comfortable being indoors was. What she saw at the front door was even more confusing.

"Tsumiki? Who's at the door?" Io's voice trailed quietly from his room.

"It looks like...two snow men."

"Mrow!"

"And a snow leopard?" Tsumiki said.


	4. Chapter 4: Nurse Tsumiki

"So warm!" Hime said happily.

"Mmmm, never gonna let go!" Mayoi agreed.

The two girls had shaken the snow off their coats and hung them to dry on the bathroom towel rack. They hugged a warm Tsumiki close to them, making it difficult for her to search the kitchen for cooking supplies. She dragged the two of them around with her as she gathered ingredient for her soup. The pot of water was bubbling furiously, and she wondered why the two didn't just warm their hands over the stove top. Then again, they would probably be in the way once she started cooking.

"I need room you two," she said, placing a pile of vegetables on the counter.

"Ah! Sorry, Tsumiki!" Hime said, releasing her grip, returning to cuddle the now sleeping cat for warmth.

"Don't mind me then! I won't get in your way!" Mayoi said, squeezing Tsumiki even tighter.

Tsumiki sighed, a hint of disappointment that Mayoi caught on to.

"Tsumiki! Were you hoping that you would be all alone with Io today, taking care of him?" Mayoi teased.

"That's not it," Tsumiki said, trying not to reveal her blushing face. "I'm just worried about Io..." she said.

"Ah! So worried that you boldly braved the storm to be with him all by yourself!"

"You two did as well," Tsumiki pointed out.

Hime sighed. "Mayoi dragged me along," she said.

"And I wouldn't have missed watching the two of you together for the world!" Mayoi said, enthusiastic.

Tsumiki felt her embarrassment and rage building up.

"Let go of me..." she repeated.

"Mmmm, no not yet," Mayoi said cuddling Tsumiki like a long lost cat she had just found.

"Fine," Tsumiki said, pulling a large knife out of the wood block. "But I can't guarantee your safety." The way she said it with a spark in her eyes made Mayoi nervous. She quickly let go, startled as she watched her knife make quick work of a daikon root. In a flash the vegetable was cut perfectly into even slices.

"You scare me sometimes Tsumiki..."

"He he..." Tsumiki laughed to herself, grabbing another vegetable. She enjoyed scaring and getting back at Mayoi for her antics from time to time.

She finished chopping and dumped the diced veggies into the boiling soup stock. She stirred the pot absentminded, adding a few touches here and there. Meanwhile, the other two were coming back from their brief visit to Io's room.

"How is he doing?" Tsumiki asked.

"Poor Io looks tired, but he says he feels alright," Hime said with concern.

"He's definitely not his usual blunt self right now." Mayoi agreed

Tsumiki nodded, "The medicine I gave him will make him a bit drowsy. He'll be able to go right back to sleep after he eats," she explained.

"Oh? So that's why he's been speaking strangely." Mayoi said.

"Huh?" Tsumiki asked.

Hime spoke before Mayoi could explain. "Tsumiki? Do you need help making Io's soup?"

"Mm..okay. It's almost done, but I can use some help with the finishing touch."

"I wanna help too!" Mayoi said, all too excited.

There was silence in the room. Mayoi looked to Hime, then Tsumiki, then back to Hime again.

"...What?" she asked.

Hime had a smile that said she wanted to tell Mayoi something, but didn't want to hurt her feelings. Luckily for her, Tsumiki said it for her.

"Mayoi... If you even get near that soup," she said, a menacing atmosphere surrounding both her and Mayoi. "I will throw you back into the storm."

"Ehhhhh!?" Mayoi cried. "You wouldn't be so cruel, would you?"

Tsumiki shot a wide cat eyed glare at her, and Mayoi knew she was serious. Io was already sick, the last thing he needed now was Mayoi's cooking skills, the risk of frog meat, uncooked eggs, or any other horrors she may create.

Soon, Hime and Tsumiki finished cooking.

"It, looks so good! Io is going to love this." Hime commented with a radiant smile.

Tsumiki nodded. She was anxious to get this to Io quickly, she had been hearing him coughing up a worse storm than the one outside, and wanted eagerly to come back to his side. She ladled it into a bowl and carefully set it on a tray to bring to his room. She hoped he would like it.

"Oh, where has Mayoi gone?" Hime asked.

Tsumiki wondered too. After she had scared Mayoi out of the kitchen, they hadn't seen her since. What exactly was she plotting this time? She and Hime found Mayoi hunched over a table, working furiously on something. There was tape, paper, rubber bands, and markers scattered on the table, some had fell to the floor. They watched her work, something in them afraid to ask just what she was doing. Her little humming didn't help. They couldn't tell if it was the hum of someone cheerful, or of a crazy plotter.

"Uh...Mayoi?" Hime spoke up.

"Huh? Oh you two are done! Perfect!" She had a wide smile on her face

_Not a good sign, _Tsumiki thought.

Mayoi flashed what she was working on in front of her. "Ta-da!"

In her hands was a finely crafted paper cap, a red cross symbol in the front. Before Tsumiki could react, Mayoi plopped it on her head triumphantly.

"And to add to your wardrobe..." Mayoi said, retrieved her now dried lab coat and was quickly able to dress Tsumiki despite her meek struggle.

"Every poor, sick, handsome young man needs a nurse to take care of him!" she said happily.

"Nurse..Tsumiki! You look so cute!" Hime cried, her eyes staring dazed at the simple but cute outfit she had on.

Mayoi's lab coat was far too big for Tsumiki. The sleeves hung far past her hands, and she dragged the coat on the ground when she walked. She shuffled to a mirror to see herself and blushed. She didn't disagree with Hime, but she was too embarrassed to say she was right either.

"I'm...I'm not wearing this," she said rather coldly. She attempted to remove the cap, but Mayoi grasped both her arms.

"Tsumiki! Think about it first!" Mayoi pleaded while Hime recovered from a nosebleed.

"Think about what?" Tsumiki asked.

"When will you ever have the opportunity to take care of Io again? Do you want to miss your chance to have an excuse to look cute in front of him?"

Tsumiki paused briefly, taking another look in the mirror. She looked like a child, playing nurse in her parents clothes. Would Io think this was cute? She didn't want to wear it in front of Io, it was embarrassing. But at the same time, what if he liked it. There wouldn't be another time to try again.

"Tsumiki?" Hime said, a little worried by her silence.

Tsumiki gave herself a look once more, then shuffled her and the coat to the kitchen and took Io's soup to his room, closing the door behind her.

"No way! She's actually doing it?!" Mayoi said, shocked.

"Eh? But you were the one trying to convince her to go in dressed like that!" Hime pointed out.

"Yeah well...I didn't actually think she was gonna do it."

()

Io's room was warmer than the living room, the portable heater doing it's job very well. Tsumiki set the tray down on his coffee table, going to check how he was doing. Io was lying on his back in bed, his blankets all the way up to his neck. She couldn't tell f he had passed out, but he was quietly groaning, his fever making him feel uncomfortable.

Tsumiki took a cold towel from the water bucket she had placed next to his bed earlier. She wrung the cool towel, getting rid of most of the water and leaned over to place it on his forehead.

_Io is..so handsome without his glasses, _she thought, suppressing the urge to nosebleed. She wanted to keep herself calm while she was taking are of him, though it was hard as she felt her heart beating quicker as she got closer.

Io groaned, his eyes slowly opening to the cool touch of the rag.

"Mmm.." he said, slowly looking around. When his eyes fixed on Tsumiki they stopped wandering, and stared at her. What would he say? Would he think she looked cute as Hime did, or would he laugh at how silly she looked and felt? When he spoke, her heart skipped a beat in anticipation.

"Was I... was I really that sick?" he half whispered.

"Huh?" she said, confused by his statement.

Io coughed and sat up. "I didn't think it was that bad of an illness, nurse."

_Nurse? _

Her face grew bright red, but she handed him his glasses, realizing that he couldn't see too well without them.

"Oh! Tsu..Tsumiki!" he gasped when he put his glasses on.

Tsumiki thought she saw him blush, but with his cheeks already red with fever it was hard to tell.

"Thank goodness, I thought I'd woken up in a hospital bed, and I thought you were my nurse," he said.

"Don't worry, you're alright," Tsumiki said. He didn't ask about her clothes so she asked. "Would you have been happy to wake up to a pretty nurse?"

"Mm maybe," he said, but then smiling at her. "But I'm much happier to wake up to see you, Tsumiki."

Tsumiki felt her blood rushing to her face, and she struggled to keep it from spilling out. The way he had said it made her heart pound wildly. But she saw that he was swaying here and there, like he couldn't stay upright for very long. The medicine was still taking affect, and he looked a bit wobbly. Io wouldn't normally say these things, but he was so lightheaded that he didn't really know what he was saying.

"If you don't mind me asking, why are you dressed like a nurse?"

_It was Mayoi's idea! _she wanted to say. But something kept her. It was the way he was looking at her. It wasn't Io's usual blank stare. She couldn't tell what was different, but it felt like he was studying, maybe even admiring her.

"It's because..." she started, trying to think of the words to say.

"Because?" Io said.

Tsumiki's head searched desperately for something to say, to add to this moment alone with Io.

"Because I am your nurse," she blurted the first thing that came to her. "I promised that I would take care of you while you are sick. Isn't that what a nurse does?"

_Idiot! Who says that?_ she criticized herself, her head hung down embarrassed. She wanted to shrink away, and hope that Io would forget what she just said.

Io's hand touched her warm cheeks, coaxing her to look up from the floor. Their eyes met, staying perfectly still for what felt like forever. Io's kind smile filled Tsumiki with such happiness that she felt her sadness leave her.

"I'm glad that I have a nurse that looks so..." His stomach interrupted the moment with a violent roar. "...hungry." He finished.

_A nurse that looks so hungry..._

She sat by Io's side patiently, feeding him spoon fulls of her soup. He swallowed each bite quickly, his stomach becoming less angry with him. Within a few minutes, the soup was gone.

"Do you want some more?" she offered.

"Maybe later, I feel like I'm about to pass out again. But it was very delicious." he said, his eye half opened and slowly closing.

The wind had stopped banging loudly on Io's window. There was no longer a flurry of white outside and the howling had been replaced by the beep of incoming snow plows.

_The three of us can go home now_

"Io?" she asked. "Do you want me to stay the night? Since your parents aren't going to be home?" Deep down she knew his answer, but she still hoped he would say yes.

"I couldn't ask that of you, Tsumiki. I wouldn't want your own parents to worry about you," he said, grabbing a tissue to sneeze into.

_I don't mind..._

But she knew Io was right, and she didn't want to argue.

"Then, I will visit you tomorrow after school," she said.

"I'd like that. Are you going to be dressed the same way?"

His words surprised her. "M..maybe? Why do you like it?"

Io didn't answer, only smiled. He beckoned her to come closer. She hoped for a pat on the head, soothing her worries until the next hand went for the back of her head, pulling her in even closer.

_Wait...what?_

"Goodnight, my adorable nurse Tsumiki."

She felt his lips on her forehead before he passed out.

She lost control

()

Mayoi and Hime sat around the coffee table in the living room, sipping on cups of warm tea.

"She's been in there for a while," Hime said, looking up at the clock. "Do you think she needs help?"

Mayoi hook her head. "Nah, I'm sure everything is fine. She's just giving Io lunch, it's not like she's performing surgery or anything."

The sound of Io's door opening and shutting again caught their attention.

"See what did I tell you? Everything's fi..." She stood up and screamed when she saw Tsumiki walk in. Tsumiki was slowly walking towards her, brief pauses in between each step. She was making odd sounds, the collar and the front of her lab coat covered in blood. She was like a nurse from a horror film.

Hime had already passed out in fear, and Mayoi had no idea what was going on.

"Wait...is that your blood Tsumiki?" she asked, noticing that her nose was also red.

"Something happened with Io didn't it!" Mayoi said, her voice changing quick from horror, to joy.

Tsumiki said nothing, but made her way to the sofa and plopped down, her entire body feeling limp and weightless. She couldn't hear Mayoi at her side, begging to know the little details that happened, drowned out by her own thoughts.

_He kissed me. He kissed me. _Over and over the words ran in her mind. The spot where his lips had touched still felt warm on her forehead. Her heart felt ecstatic like a dozen kittens purring in her chest. And for a while she just lay there, and ran the words, the experience through her head again and again.

_He kissed me._

_Io kissed me. _


	5. Chapter 5: No More Worries

**A late happy new years to all who are reading. Thank you!**

The snow from yesterdays storm was plowed clean, almost as if the storm hadn't happened at all. Io was warm in his coat, his scarf wrapped snugly around his neck as he walked his bike towards school. His cough had subsided, and his throat was much better. He still had a bit of a sniffle, but he definitely felt well enough to come back to school.

"Io! Good morning Io!" he heard Mayoi's voice coming from behind him. He turned to see her and Hime walking quickly to him, just like always. Though he noticed something was off.

"Good morning you two," he said.

"It looks like you're feeling much better now Io," Hime said cheerfully.

Io nodded. "Yeah, it feels good to be able to get out of bed," he said. Finally he figured out what was wrong.

"Mayoi, you're not wearing your lab coat today?" It was strange to see her coming to school in a regular coat. For anyone else this would be normal, but not for Mayoi.

"It's at the cleaners," she said, sounding a little disappointed. "There was an...accident."

"Oh? What happened?" Io asked.

Suddenly Mayoi got incredibly close to him, a sly smile on her face. "I was going to ask you that, Io. You must know since you were there."

"Huh?" Io was utterly confused.

Mayoi grabbed the front of Io's coat. "Io! I need to know! What happened yesterday? What do you remember when Tsumiki came to take care of you. Tell me!" she pleaded.

Io didn't understand what Mayoi was going crazy over, but it must have been important.

"Well... I remember Tsumiki came to visit. Then at some point the two of you showed up. Then Tsumiki was in a nurse outfit..." he stopped a minute. "Then I had some of her soup and passed out," he finished.

"Eh? Why did you pause there? Did something happen?" Mayoi asked.

"Uh..no. I don't think so," his cheeks starting to warm.

"Io's blushing!" Hime said, her own red cheeks sending blood down her nose.

"Aha! So something did happen! Come on Io, you have to tell me, Tsumiki won't!"

"No, it's just..."

_She was just...so adorable..._he thought to himself. Saying those words out loud felt embarrassing.

"To be honest," he recovered, "I was really out of it the entire time, so I don't really remember much."

"Nooo!" Mayoi cried, taking Io by surprise.

"Eh? Whats wrong?"

Mayoi had her back to them, her head drooping. Io was the only chance she had to uncover what had happened that day, and he didn't remember a thing. "Now I'll never know why my coat had to be sacrificed."

"Mayoi sounds so depressed," Hime said, worried.

"When she says it like that, I feel the same way. Even though her coat will probably be cleaned soon," Io said, still not sure what Mayoi was really depressed about.

Hime tried to change the subject. "Io, what's that in your basket?" She pointed to the black and white, soft looking object, resting in Io's bike basket.

"Oh, right," he said, a smile running across his face. He pulled the plush out to show them. "I bought this on my way to school."

It was a stuffed, black cat plush. On it's head rested a little cloth nurse hat with the red cross on it.

"Io! It's so cute and fluffy!" Hime exclaimed, trying not to let her nose bleed get on the plush as she held it.

"I got it for Tsumiki, to thank her for yesterday. I thought it was fitting to get her this one. Do you think she'll like it?"

Mayoi suddenly cheered up. "Only one way to find out! Let's go see if Tsumiki's already in school!" she said.

"You suddenly got better quickly." Io pointed out.

Mayoi replied with a brief giggle. Even though she wouldn't know what had caused Tsumiki's explosive nose bleed, she would at least be able watch her cutely refuse, and eventually accept Io's gift.

()

"Where the heck did you guys go?!" Sakaki said as the three ran into him down the hall to their classroom. It never occurred to any of them at the time that they had forgotten to inform Sakaki what was going on. H

"Oh yeah, we went to go check up on Io," Hime said.

"Sorry," Io said, "I was sick."

Sakaki sighed with relief, walking with them to their classroom. "I would have come over, but that snowstorm really kicked in after class. We pretty much had to stay in school until it ended and the plows came in. Glad to see you're all still alive."

"Thanks," Io said, patting his friend on the shoulder. "By the way, have you seen Tsumiki?"

"Miniwa? I just got here, so I don't think so. She's probably curled up by the heater in the classroom," Sakaki said, noticing the cat plush Io was holding. "A gift for her? This should be interesting," he said with a sly smile.

"What do you mean?" Io asked.

"Tsumiki will be like..." Mayoi chimed in, working her best Tsumiki impression. "Io...I don't want to take this adorable kitty!"

"Oh but why?" Sakaki came in with a terrible Io impression. "I went through so much trouble to get you this gift. I had to fight over the last of these and stand in a line with crying children for hours to bring you this."

"It wasn't even nearly that hard..." Io commented, but the two didn't acknowledge him.

"Oh Io...I'm embarrassed, but I will take it because you worked so hard, but also because I really do want it. It makes me so happy!" Mayoi said.

Sakaki, plaed his hand on her head, mimicking Io. "I'd walk to the end of the earth for my little Tsumikitty to see your warm, beautiful smile," he said.

"Io..."

"Tsumiki..."

They were so engaged in their performance, Io swore he saw sparkles in their eyes.

There was a thunk as Hime hit the floor. "Their so cute!"

"I didn't realize in my absence that the two of you became an item." Io said.

The two immediately broke character.

"What are you stupid?!" they shouted at the same time.

"Relax. I was joking." Io said.

Io led the group down the hallway where their class was. Hime was close behind him, followed by Mayoi and Sakaki, both red in the face and refusing to glance at each other. When they reached the door, he stopped. He didn't know why though. His hand went for the door but he didn't open it. Tsumiki was inside, probably with both hands toasty warm by now, and he wanted to see her and thank her for yesterday. Yet, something was keeping him back. Was he nervous to give see her again? Why would that be? It was a feeling he couldn't understand.

Then his mind went back to what Mayoi had said. _Something had happened?_ What could have possibly happened that day to make him feel this way. He tried to remember, really digging into his memory, but turned up nothing. And yet nothing was making him nervous.

"Uh...Io?" Hime broke the spell.

"Sorry," he said, "I kinda got lost in thought." He opened the door.

The four of them felt a rush of warmth as hot air from the room escaped into the cold hallways.

But there was no Tsumiki in the room.

"Hm..." Io sighed to himself disappointed.

"Guess she's not here yet," Hime said.

"It's still early, so she should be here soon," Mayoi said.

Minutes went by, and Tsumiki didn't show up. Io was constantly checking the clock and the door.

"It's like deja vu." Sakaki said.

"Mhm, except it's Io this time," Mayoi said.

Io whipped out his phone and dialed for Tsumiki.

"Straight to voice mail," he said after a few seconds.

"Tsumiki must not have charged her phone since yesterday," Hime said.

Five minute to class time, and still no sign of her.

"Hm...you don't think..." Sakaki started.

"I was afraid of this," Io interrupted. He quickly got up from his desk and headed for the door. "I don't think anyone we know saw me come in."

"Huh, where are you going?" Hime asked.

Io slowly opened the door and peered out at both ends of the halls.

Sakaki joined him.

"Don't think you're getting out," he said. At one end of the hall, there was a pack of students blocking the exit, standing around and waiting for class. At the other end, their teacher was walking towards the class.

"Alright, I'll have to do something drastic," Io said. He closed the door, and walked up to the window.

"Io, what are you doing?" Mayoi asked as Io opened the window.

"Tell Sensei that I'm still sick," Io said. "Come visit us after school." And with that he leaped out the second story window.

"Io jumped!" Hime screamed.

"Io what the hell!?" Mayoi cried. The girls rushed to the window to see if he was alright. Io fortunately landed on the ground floor without a scratch and ran for his bike.

"Io's fine," Sakaki said. "We do that all the time just to get lunch."

"You knew he would do that, but you didn't stop him?!" Hime asked panic stricken.

"You are such an irresponsible friend!" Mayoi yelled, pointing defiantly at Sakaki.

"Hey wait a minute.."Sakaki tried to defend himself.

The door came open.

"What is going on in here?" their teacher asked, confused by what she was seeing.

There was a moment of silence.

"Nothing Sensei!" the three said in unison.

()

_This sucks..._

Tsumiki lay in bed, wrapped up in the thickest, fluffiest blankets she could find. She snuggled herself between two giant plushies, one of a pink cat and the other of a fluffy yellow duck. Her nose was stuffed, and coughing hurt her throat terribly. Her parents had already given her some medicine, and she was already feeling the drowsy after affects, but she couldn't sleep. Her head, though in a haze, was still revolving around Io. She wanted more than ever to be able to see him today, but visiting him now was out of the question. He had warned her this would happen, but she hadn't cared about the consequences to herself. Now she had caught Io's cold.

The only thing that was keeping her from complete misery was the memory of Io's kiss. She rubbed her forehead, wishing she could feel the warmth it had left there again. Io wouldn't have remembered, she knew that. He would be back to his dense self in no time. It was her secret she would tell no one.

_Especially not Mayoi._

She sneezed and reached for her box of tissues, but to her dismay it was empty. As much as she didn't want to move, she had no choice. She wriggled out of the tight grasp of her blankets and left her room to get more from the hallway closet. The tissue boxes were on one of the higher shelves, just beyond her reach. Tsumiki eyed one teetering on the edge of the shelf. With a good, hard thwacking of the closet shelves, the box came tumbling down into her hands.

The doorbell rang.

_Who could be...wait..._

Deja vu took her over for a minute, but she shook her head.

_No. That's not happening. _

She shuffled to the door. Though she was trying not to expect anything, her heart was throbbing in her chest as she opened the door.

"Good morning, Tsumiki," Io said.

She dropped her tissue box.

"Io!..Wha..what ar.." she stuttered.

"I came to check up on you."

"O..oh.." was all she could say. She was looking down at his feet. She felt overjoyed that he decided to skip school to make sure she was okay, but her embarrassment was too much to admit it.

"You..you didn't have to come," she said. "You might get in trouble." She looked up into his kind, caring eyes, and was locked in his gaze.

"I know, but you came to take care of me yesterday." She felt Io's hand on her head, petting her. "Now, I want to take care of you. I'm going to take this cold from you."

His words made Tsumiki's legs go limp, falling forward nto his chest. He caught her quickly as she nearly passed out.

"Tsumiki! Are you okay?" he said.

Tsumiki groaned, her head completely in the clouds now. Her face grew even warmer than the fever she had, nuzzling his chest like a cat marking her territory. Her whole body felt limp in his arms. She didn't want him to let go.

Io smiled. "Come on, let get you back to bed." He picked her up, carrying her like a princess to her room. Tsumiki leaned up against him, lost for words. Surely he could feel her heart beating rapidly as she pressed up against him? Being carried like that brought her face so close to his, and it was tempting her and making her feel dizzy.

"Io?.." she said quietly.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Come closer?"

Io leaned his head in a little closer.

Tsumiki's hands went around his head, "Thank you, Io." Her lips lightly brushing up against his cheek.

Io fell silent, the beating of his own heart racing in his chest. He had stopped breathing for a split second, his face turning red.

"Ts..Tsumiki," he said, but it seemed she had completely passed out in his arms. He listened to her cute, quiet snores and saw a small river of blood running slowly down her nose.

Gently setting her down on her bed, he wiped the blood off. He pulled the little cat plush from his coat pocket and set it next to her, tucking them both in under the warm blankets.

"Sleep well, Tsumiki," he said, rubbing her on the forehead. "I'll be here to take care of you when you wake up." He smiled to himself, sitting by her side. This feeling he had, he didn't know how to explain, but it made his heart race.

_We'll talk when she gets better._

()

Tsumiki had still been awake when he tucked her into bed. After what she had done, she felt so embarrassed that she pretended to be asleep. She was worried what Io would think of her, doing such a reckless thing. But he was still kind, still understanding.

"I'll be here to take care of you..." That's what he said. She smiled, her eyes still shut. She held the soft kitty he had left for her, ran her fingers through the furry cloth.

_Io...I'm sick right now. But when I get better..._

She squeezed the kitty plush tightly to her chest as she slowly began to fall asleep.

_When I get better...I want to kiss you properly._

**_End of Part (A)_**


End file.
